Auction Locations
Car auctions in Japan are spread throughout the country, from Hokkaido in the North, to Okinawa in the south. Auctions range in size from small rural affairs with a few hundred cars, to USS Tokyo, which has up to 20,000 vehicles each week.
Although it would see that the auctions in the main metropolitan areas are best suited to purchasing from for export due to their proximity to the major ports, good savings can be made by buying from auctions in the rural areas which more than offset the extra transportation charges. A good example of this would be the car auctions in Okinawa where although transportation to the mainland costs almost sixty thousand Yen, the relative poverty of the region means that luxury and foreign cars cannot find local buyers and so can be bought at bargain prices that more than offset the steep transportation costs.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Bidding
In practice all auction bidding is done electronically. This is the case whether the buyer is physically present at the auction location itself, or whether bidding remotely via live internet simulcast. Buyers can also enter tendered bids for some auctions, or can tender bids which are then bid on live through a third company, such as Asnet.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Car Auction Groups
There are few auctions that operate independently and these tend to be in the rural areas. An example of one of these would be the White Wing auction in Hokkaido. The vast majority of Japanese car auctions are owned and operated by one of the large auction houses. The largest of these is the USS auction group which, as you can see above, also operates the largest auto auction. Other auction groups include Honda, TAA (Toyota), NAA (Nissan), SAA, JU, JAA and GNN.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Times
Each auction location runs a single auction on a set day every week. The information about the vehicles that will be available in the auction is posted online a few days in advance, giving car dealers and car exporters a chance to review the available vehicles. Auctions are run on all days of the week except for Sunday. In terms of the volume of vehicles available, the day with the lowest number of auctions, and hence the smallest number of vehicles is Monday (6,000 to 10,000 vehicles), and conversely the auction day with the greatest number is Thursday (35,000 to 52,000 vehicles) thanks, in large part, to USS Tokyo.
On the day of the auction, bidding commences just after 9 am JST. On busy days, large auctions will see bidding from stretch on into the night - sometimes until after midnight. In order to process as many vehicles as possible during this one day, many auctions run several "lanes" at each location. The result of this is that a number of vehicles are then being auctioned at the same time. For the buyer, this means that he or she needs to keep track of this on multiple split-screen monitors to ensure that bidding on a particular vehicle can proceed smoothly.
Although official live bidding will finish at the latest in the early hours of the following day, if a car did not reach its reserve price, with some auction houses it is possible to make an offer to purchase before lunchtime on the following day.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Sheets (Auction Inspector's Reports)
Each vehicle is graded prior to sale. The auction inspector writes an inspection report, also referred to as an auction sheet. This auction sheet tells the prospective buyer the following kinds of information:
Here is an example of an auction sheet for a Suzuki Swift:
The grade is the overall assessment of the car given to it by the auction house's assessors. There are usually two grades - exterior + mechanical condition (usually a number), and interior condition (usually a letter - A, B or C). As you can see in the top right, this car is a grade 4 vehicle with an interior grade of C.
Overall auction grade
Grade 6, 7, 8, 9 or S is given to a new car that is being sold in an auction.
Grade 5 to a car with less than 10,000kms and usually up to about 3 years old in excellent condition.
Grade 4.5 is in very good condition.
Grade 4 is a good, solid used vehicle
Grade 3.5 is similar but may need more work than a grade 4 car, or perhaps has high mileage since very few cars are given grade 4 if they are over 100,000kms.
Grade 3 is given to vehicles that either have very high (at least 100,000 KMs) mileage, or that are pretty rough and need quite a bit of work.
Grade A, R, RA Are repair history cars. The auctions definition of "repair history" is a car that has had an inside panel repaired in some way. This can range from extremely minor to major.
Grade 1 Can be one of the following
1). Flood history (rare)
2). After market turbo / engine (some sort of serious modification to the original vehicle)
3). Transmission changed from auto to manual.
Ungraded Cars are write-off cars which may not move at all. Auctions provide no guarantees about cars of this grade, nor do they provide much information regarding the vehicle's current state. This is important as if the car does not move, then transportation costs to move the vehicle from the auction after purchase can be considerable.
Interior grade
Some auctions have a letter, A, B or C to denote interior grade. These letters can be seen near the overall grading number at the top left of the auction sheet. A is above average for the age of the vehicle, B is average for the age of the vehicle, and C is below average for the age of the vehicle. A heavily modified car that has had interior trim items removed (such as seats and carpet) and a roll cage added to give it the race car look will probably have an interior grade of D.
Car Map
This is in the bottom right corner of the auction sheet showing an overhead stylize image of a vehicleOn the map, the number after the letter denotes the severity of the damage. 1 = light, 2 = moderate, 3 = significant , 4 = major
A Scratch
U Dent
B Dent with scratch
W Wave, or repaired area
S Rust (orange discoloration on the surface)
C Corrosion (rust has progressed so that now the original metal is now flaking away)
P Paint
H Paint faded
XX Replaced panel
X Needs replacing
G Stone chip on glass
Y Crack
E Dimple
Of course, if you are not a Japanese speaker, you will not be able to read the auction notes that are written in that language. For non-Japanese buying cars through exporters this is a vital piece of information. Provide Cars provides English translations auction sheets so that our customers can make informed decisions about whether to proceed with a bid or not.
The auction inspectors' reports are generally reliable, which is why car auction buyers have the confidence to bid on cars at one end of the country when they are at the other.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Seasonal Variations
Japanese car auctions experience seasonal variations in terms of the numbers of vehicles available and the average prices of vehicles sold. The peak season in terms of high numbers (and, as a result, lower prices) is between February and May annually. The largest auction days during this period can see individual days when there are over 50,000 vehicles being auctioned live.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
The Advantages of Buying From Japanese Car Auctions For Export
Japanese car auctions are a great source for good value, secondhand cars of all ages and mileages. There are several factors behind this.
First of all, as a people, the Japanese prefer things that are new (an example being that the average Japanese house is only 27 years old), and this, coupled with a tax regime that encourages buying new cars, results in Japanese cars losing value quickly. Add to this the fact that the pressure on the big manufacturers like Toyota and Honda to dominate their home market in terms of sales, means that most new cars are sold with the thinnest of margins These factors make a potent combination, driving down the prices of used cars.
This is not the sole attraction for people outside of Japan. Another strong positive factor in choosing to source secondhand cars from here is the fact that Japanese car owners are very careful drivers, putting relatively low mileage on their vehicles while usually keeping to the strict maintenance schedule prescribed by the car dealership.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
LHD cars
Although Japan is an RHD country, like the UK or New Zealand, this does not mean that you cannot find good numbers of LHD (left hand drive) cars in the car auctions here. Of course, the locally-produced cars (made by the Japanese manufacturers like Toyota, Nissan, Honda etc) are all built in RHD format for the local market. However, there are large numbers of LHD cars that are made by non-Japanese makers.
In Japan, owning a "foreign" (i.e. non-Japanese) car is considered to be a status symbol - and how best to emphasize the "foreign-ness" of your car than if it has the steering wheel on the "wrong" side? (This can lead to the rather strange situation where cars originally produced as RHD cars - such as Jaguars - are sold in Japan as LHD vehicles, despite the inconvenience of having the steering wheel on the other side, because of this "snob" value.)
Rarer, particularly high-performance, models such as Lamborghinis, Maseratis etc, are often only available as LHD models here, even though there are RHD equivalents that are manufactured for the UK market.
Looking for LHD BMWs, Mercedes, Porsches and other non-Japanese makes? Get find great deals in the Japanese Car Auctions here.
Car auctions in Japan are spread throughout the country, from Hokkaido in the North, to Okinawa in the south. Auctions range in size from small rural affairs with a few hundred cars, to USS Tokyo, which has up to 20,000 vehicles each week.
Although it would see that the auctions in the main metropolitan areas are best suited to purchasing from for export due to their proximity to the major ports, good savings can be made by buying from auctions in the rural areas which more than offset the extra transportation charges. A good example of this would be the car auctions in Okinawa where although transportation to the mainland costs almost sixty thousand Yen, the relative poverty of the region means that luxury and foreign cars cannot find local buyers and so can be bought at bargain prices that more than offset the steep transportation costs.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Bidding
In practice all auction bidding is done electronically. This is the case whether the buyer is physically present at the auction location itself, or whether bidding remotely via live internet simulcast. Buyers can also enter tendered bids for some auctions, or can tender bids which are then bid on live through a third company, such as Asnet.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Car Auction Groups
There are few auctions that operate independently and these tend to be in the rural areas. An example of one of these would be the White Wing auction in Hokkaido. The vast majority of Japanese car auctions are owned and operated by one of the large auction houses. The largest of these is the USS auction group which, as you can see above, also operates the largest auto auction. Other auction groups include Honda, TAA (Toyota), NAA (Nissan), SAA, JU, JAA and GNN.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Times
Each auction location runs a single auction on a set day every week. The information about the vehicles that will be available in the auction is posted online a few days in advance, giving car dealers and car exporters a chance to review the available vehicles. Auctions are run on all days of the week except for Sunday. In terms of the volume of vehicles available, the day with the lowest number of auctions, and hence the smallest number of vehicles is Monday (6,000 to 10,000 vehicles), and conversely the auction day with the greatest number is Thursday (35,000 to 52,000 vehicles) thanks, in large part, to USS Tokyo.
On the day of the auction, bidding commences just after 9 am JST. On busy days, large auctions will see bidding from stretch on into the night - sometimes until after midnight. In order to process as many vehicles as possible during this one day, many auctions run several "lanes" at each location. The result of this is that a number of vehicles are then being auctioned at the same time. For the buyer, this means that he or she needs to keep track of this on multiple split-screen monitors to ensure that bidding on a particular vehicle can proceed smoothly.
Although official live bidding will finish at the latest in the early hours of the following day, if a car did not reach its reserve price, with some auction houses it is possible to make an offer to purchase before lunchtime on the following day.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Auction Sheets (Auction Inspector's Reports)
Each vehicle is graded prior to sale. The auction inspector writes an inspection report, also referred to as an auction sheet. This auction sheet tells the prospective buyer the following kinds of information:
- Year - note that this is the year of first registration in Japan.
- Model type specifics.
- Engine capacity
- Mileage (in KMs)
- Equipment
- Overall grade (see below)
- Interior grade (see below)
- Sales points - for example, perhaps the vehicle has only had a single owner.
- Defects
- Car map - showing extent and nature of exterior damage
- Chassis type and chassis number
Here is an example of an auction sheet for a Suzuki Swift:
The grade is the overall assessment of the car given to it by the auction house's assessors. There are usually two grades - exterior + mechanical condition (usually a number), and interior condition (usually a letter - A, B or C). As you can see in the top right, this car is a grade 4 vehicle with an interior grade of C.
Overall auction grade
Grade 6, 7, 8, 9 or S is given to a new car that is being sold in an auction.
Grade 5 to a car with less than 10,000kms and usually up to about 3 years old in excellent condition.
Grade 4.5 is in very good condition.
Grade 4 is a good, solid used vehicle
Grade 3.5 is similar but may need more work than a grade 4 car, or perhaps has high mileage since very few cars are given grade 4 if they are over 100,000kms.
Grade 3 is given to vehicles that either have very high (at least 100,000 KMs) mileage, or that are pretty rough and need quite a bit of work.
Grade A, R, RA Are repair history cars. The auctions definition of "repair history" is a car that has had an inside panel repaired in some way. This can range from extremely minor to major.
Grade 1 Can be one of the following
1). Flood history (rare)
2). After market turbo / engine (some sort of serious modification to the original vehicle)
3). Transmission changed from auto to manual.
Ungraded Cars are write-off cars which may not move at all. Auctions provide no guarantees about cars of this grade, nor do they provide much information regarding the vehicle's current state. This is important as if the car does not move, then transportation costs to move the vehicle from the auction after purchase can be considerable.
Interior grade
Some auctions have a letter, A, B or C to denote interior grade. These letters can be seen near the overall grading number at the top left of the auction sheet. A is above average for the age of the vehicle, B is average for the age of the vehicle, and C is below average for the age of the vehicle. A heavily modified car that has had interior trim items removed (such as seats and carpet) and a roll cage added to give it the race car look will probably have an interior grade of D.
Car Map
This is in the bottom right corner of the auction sheet showing an overhead stylize image of a vehicleOn the map, the number after the letter denotes the severity of the damage. 1 = light, 2 = moderate, 3 = significant , 4 = major
A Scratch
U Dent
B Dent with scratch
W Wave, or repaired area
S Rust (orange discoloration on the surface)
C Corrosion (rust has progressed so that now the original metal is now flaking away)
P Paint
H Paint faded
XX Replaced panel
X Needs replacing
G Stone chip on glass
Y Crack
E Dimple
Of course, if you are not a Japanese speaker, you will not be able to read the auction notes that are written in that language. For non-Japanese buying cars through exporters this is a vital piece of information. Provide Cars provides English translations auction sheets so that our customers can make informed decisions about whether to proceed with a bid or not.
The auction inspectors' reports are generally reliable, which is why car auction buyers have the confidence to bid on cars at one end of the country when they are at the other.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
Seasonal Variations
Japanese car auctions experience seasonal variations in terms of the numbers of vehicles available and the average prices of vehicles sold. The peak season in terms of high numbers (and, as a result, lower prices) is between February and May annually. The largest auction days during this period can see individual days when there are over 50,000 vehicles being auctioned live.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
The Advantages of Buying From Japanese Car Auctions For Export
Japanese car auctions are a great source for good value, secondhand cars of all ages and mileages. There are several factors behind this.
First of all, as a people, the Japanese prefer things that are new (an example being that the average Japanese house is only 27 years old), and this, coupled with a tax regime that encourages buying new cars, results in Japanese cars losing value quickly. Add to this the fact that the pressure on the big manufacturers like Toyota and Honda to dominate their home market in terms of sales, means that most new cars are sold with the thinnest of margins These factors make a potent combination, driving down the prices of used cars.
This is not the sole attraction for people outside of Japan. Another strong positive factor in choosing to source secondhand cars from here is the fact that Japanese car owners are very careful drivers, putting relatively low mileage on their vehicles while usually keeping to the strict maintenance schedule prescribed by the car dealership.
Interested? Get free access to Japanese Car Auctions here.
LHD cars
Although Japan is an RHD country, like the UK or New Zealand, this does not mean that you cannot find good numbers of LHD (left hand drive) cars in the car auctions here. Of course, the locally-produced cars (made by the Japanese manufacturers like Toyota, Nissan, Honda etc) are all built in RHD format for the local market. However, there are large numbers of LHD cars that are made by non-Japanese makers.
In Japan, owning a "foreign" (i.e. non-Japanese) car is considered to be a status symbol - and how best to emphasize the "foreign-ness" of your car than if it has the steering wheel on the "wrong" side? (This can lead to the rather strange situation where cars originally produced as RHD cars - such as Jaguars - are sold in Japan as LHD vehicles, despite the inconvenience of having the steering wheel on the other side, because of this "snob" value.)
Rarer, particularly high-performance, models such as Lamborghinis, Maseratis etc, are often only available as LHD models here, even though there are RHD equivalents that are manufactured for the UK market.
Looking for LHD BMWs, Mercedes, Porsches and other non-Japanese makes? Get find great deals in the Japanese Car Auctions here.
Debt Relief
Invite as author
Very informative!
my concern is, japanese cars are right-hand drive
am i right?
which is not suitable for us in the US and other countries.
check out www.acauction.com for car auctions in the US.
That was a good reminder for me to add this information that LHD cars are available from the car auctions here in Japan. The only proviso is that if you want a Japanese-manufacture
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